Improvement in means of attaching magazines to fire-arms



H METCALFE. Means of Attaching Magazines to Fire-Armg. 'No.l 67,006.

Patented Aug. 24,1875

UNIT STAr Es PATENT flrrron.

HENRY METGALFE, OF UNITED s'rA'rEsARMY, SPRINGFIELD, MASS.

IMPROVEMENT IN MEANS OF ATTACI -IING MAGAZINES TO FIRE-ARMS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 167,006, dated August24, 1875; application filed December 16, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY METOALFE, lieutenant in the United StatesArmy, and residing in Springfield, in the State of Massachusetts, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in Fire-Arms; and I do herebydeclare that the following is a full, clear, and exact descriptionthereof, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings making a partof this specification, and to the letters of reference'marked thereon,in which- Figure 1 represents a side view of part of a gun, illustratingmy invention as applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section of thesame, and Fig. 3 is aside view of the cartridge-block designed to beused or attached to the gun; and Fig. 4 is a plan view of the block. I

My invention relates to an attachment to a gun, wherebya quantity ofcartridges may be carried upon the gun in a convenient posi tion forloading them into the gun; and it consists of a support attached to thegun near the lower band, to hold one end of the cartridge-block, and.another piece provided with a cam-lever pivoted to the piece, so that byplacing the iron at the front end of the cartridge-block into thesupport at the band, and turning the cam-lever against the rear end ofthe block, the latter is held firmly in its place upon the gun.

In the drawings, B represents a side view of that portion of the gun towhich the block is secured, which is provided with a strap, A, which,preferably, is let into the wood of the stock, and when so attached theforward end of the strap extends in a little distance under the band 0,and the forward end of the strap A is provided with a protuberance, at,having a recess or cavity, a, therein. The rear end of the strap issecured firmly to the stock, either by extending it beneath thelockplate a little, or by a screw, or in any other convenient manner,and is provided with a lever, e, which is so pivoted to the strap as toturn freely therein, and the forward end of this lever is so formed thatwhen moved into a horizontal position it will bear against the rear endof the cartridge-block, and the lever is cut away at i to give it alittle spring or elasticity, and may be enlarged at the end.

to form a thumb-piece, b. This part of the lever is also provided with apin, f, on the inside, to snap into a small hole or indentation in thestrap, the object of which is to keep the lever securely in place.

In Fi g. 3, D represents the cartridgeblock, provided at one end with ametallic plate, I,

made ofa circular form at n, to fit into the circular recess a, in thepart a, and the blockris provided at the other end with a plate, J,having a cavity or recess, h, into which the front end of the lever eenters, when the lever is placed is a horizontal position, to hold theblock secure. To secure the block in place upon the gun it is onlynecessary to force down the end I) of the lever into a verticalposition, as shown in dotted lines inFig. 1. The block is then securedby in-.

serting the circular part a of the plate I into the recess a, with theblock close to the side of the gun, and then pressing down the rear endof the block, so that the recess It will come just in front of theforward end of the lever e. The latter is then swung up into place, thepin f springing into the small cavity f, made to receive it. Thismovement forces the front end of the lever e into the recess h of theplate J at the rear end of theblock D.

It is evident'that the part a, with the cavity a. therein, may be madeseparate from the strap, and may be secured to the gun by a screw orother convenient means, and it may be made of any convenient form tosupport the end of the cartridge-block, and a small part of the strap Aat the rear end, or a small plate of sufficient size to be attachedtothe gun, with the lever e pivoted thereto, may

grasp the opposite "end ofthe ca-rtridge-blook, "in a secure position.upon the gun, substansubstantialiy as described; tially as described.

2. In combination with a cartridge-block, HENRY METGALFE, D, providedwith plates J and I, thepiw, I Lieut. 0rd. oted lever e and aprojection, both said lever Witnesses: and projection being made .uponor attached- SAML. W. PORTER, v to the gun, and arranged to'hold'theblock JJH. HASTINGS.

